Department for Transport

Northern Rail Franchise

Faisal Rashid: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how much Government subsidy the Northern railway franchise will receive in the next financial year.

Andrew Jones: The originally contracted annual subsidy amount payable to Arriva Rail North for 2019/20 was £221m in 2015/16 prices. However, these amounts will be subject to a number of changes in line with the provisions of the contract, many of which are not currently quantified and won’t be finalised until the after the financial year has ended.

Forests: Conservation

Jon Trickett: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether he plans to adopt the finding of Natural England on the planting ratio of 30:1 to ensure conservation of the ancient woodlands that will potentially be damaged by High Speed Two.

Ms Nusrat Ghani: Where losses of ancient woodland are expected to occur, a range of compensatory measures may be proposed by High Speed Two Ltd; translocation of ancient woodland soils; translocation of coppice stools; new woodland creation; and enhancement to existing woodlands (ancient and non-ancient). The selection of these compensatory measures will be bespoke to each ancient woodland site affected and HS2 Ltd has not adopted a ratio approach during their development. Measures are outlined in the Environmental Statement Volume 2 Community Forum Area/Community Area reports for the Phase One and Phase 2a Schemes respectively, and will be outlined in the forthcoming formal Environmental Statement for the Phase 2b Scheme in 2020.

Transport: Hydrogen

Anna Turley: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of (a) the trials led by HyDeploy to convert the UK’s domestic gas grid to hydrogen and (b) how those trials can be used to support the development and implementation of the use of hydrogen in transport.

Jesse Norman: HyDeploy is funded under Ofgem’s Gas Network Innovation Competition and is being delivered by the HyDeploy consortium, led by Cadent and Northern Gas Networks. Officials are following the progress of the project closely and will review the project when it finishes in 2020. More broadly, the Government is exploring hydrogen’s potential to deliver against its clean growth goals across the energy system and the wider economy. Specifically, in the case of transport, the approach has been to support the market in its early stages, by funding the deployment of Fuel Cell Electric Vehicles with the appropriate hydrogen refuelling infrastructure.

Eurotunnel

Alan Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what role his Department has in the selection and prioritisation of projects listed under paragraph 1 (a) to (f) of the Eurotunnel obligations under the Government settlement agreement.

Chris Grayling: The principal role of the Government has been to agree the specific areas of expenditure, ensuring that they have wider security and infrastructure resilience benefits. It is for Eurotunnel, not Government, to determine the selection and prioritisation of projects. Government will, consistent with the Settlement Agreement, consider how the expenditure is committed or expended. If there are concerns about whether it is being used for a permitted purpose it would fully exercise its rights under the dispute resolution process.

Eurotunnel

Alan Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what the process is for parties to agree additional or alternate projects as set out in paragraph 1, sub section (f) of the Eurotunnel obligations under government settlement agreement.

Chris Grayling: The Government fully expects the initial commitment of expenditure to be on the projects identified in paragraphs 1 (a) to (e). It expects to discuss and agree any other projects under 1 (f) as part of its ongoing engagement with Eurotunnel.

Eurotunnel

Alan Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps have been taken to ensure that projects that will be undertaken by Eurotunnel under the terms of the Government settlement agreement are new projects and not projects or measures that Eurotunnel would otherwise have committed to using separate funding streams.

Chris Grayling: The Settlement Agreement does not limit the expenditure to specifically new projects. However, the settlement, by requiring expenditure on security and infrastructure resilience, secures specific commitments by Eurotunnel to spending on these areas – securing the benefits that such improvements provide. The money cannot be spent on routine maintenance or operational costs.

Eurotunnel

Alan Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what funds are recoverable to the Department from the Government settlement agreement if Eurotunnel do not spend the £33 million within a 45-month period as set out in paragraph (3) of the agreement.

Chris Grayling: If Eurotunnel do not commit to spend the full £33 million within the agreed timeframe then they will be in breach of the conditions in the Settlement Agreement. The Government would then be able to take appropriate action, including action through the Courts.

Eurotunnel

Alan Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what happens to any sum of money not spent in equal parts within 21 months of receipt of each instalment as set out in paragraph (3) of the Government settlement agreement with Eurotunnel.

Chris Grayling: If Eurotunnel do not commit to spend an instalment payment within the agreed timeframe then they will be in breach of the conditions in the Settlement Agreement. The Government would then be able to take appropriate action, including action through the Courts.

Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

Babies: Day Care

Chris Elmore: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what recent discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Education on childcare support for parents of ill or premature babies.

Kelly Tolhurst: The Department is conducting a short, focussed internal review of the provisions for parents of premature babies and sick babies and those that experience multiple births. Preliminary work on this has now completed and my officials have identified potential areas for further work and options for taking this forward, including opportunities to work with other Government Departments. I expect to be in a position to say more about this in due course.

Public Houses: Codes of Practice

Chris Green: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, if he will take steps to ensure that the upcoming Pubs Code review includes a full public consultation.

Chris Green: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, whether consumers will have the opportunity to share their views as part of the review into the Pubs Code.

Kelly Tolhurst: The Government is currently considering the format of the statutory review of the Pubs Code and the Pubs Code Adjudicator and will ensure all those with an interest have an opportunity to contribute to the review.

Job Creation: Yorkshire and the Humber

Mr David Davis: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what recent steps his Department has taken to help businesses create more highly skilled jobs in Yorkshire and the Humber.

Kelly Tolhurst: The Industrial Strategy is our long-term plan to boost productivity by backing businesses to create high-quality, well paid jobs throughout the United Kingdom, with investment in skills, industries and infrastructure. The Government has to date awarded over £50m to support businesses in Yorkshire and the Humber through the Industrial Strategy Challenge Fund (ISCF), which brings together world-class UK research with business investment to develop the technologies that will transform existing industries and create entirely new ones. For example, we are investing in ITM Power (Trading) Ltd in Sheffield to demonstrate the feasibility of a hydrogen economy in remote areas.Also, since its launch in 2012, the Start-Up Loans programme, part of the British Business Bank, has delivered more than 5,200 loans, totalling £42.690m in Yorkshire and the Humber.The Government is also investing over £1.3 billion through Yorkshire and Humber Local Enterprise Partnership Growth Deals and has established Enterprise Zones across the region, which are both supporting the creation of higher skilled jobs such as Siemens’ offshore wind blade factory in Hull and at the Humber Enterprise Park in Brough.

Wind Power: Continental Shelf

Ian Mearns: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what steps he is taking to ensure that UK employment law applies to shipping companies contracted to (a) transport, (b) install, (c) construct and (d) maintain offshore wind farms on the UK Continental Shelf.

Kelly Tolhurst: Holding answer received on 18 March 2019



Workers on offshore windfarms are entitled to the same protections as UK workers, including National Minimum Wage for all their work on the installation, construction and maintenance of the windfarms regardless of nationality or where they ordinarily work. Workers on UK registered ships are entitled to National Minimum Wage for all their work on the ship wherever it is located, unless they work entirely outside the UK or are not ordinarily resident in the UK. BEIS and the DfT are working together to increase the scope of National Minimum Wage entitlement from those seafarers in internal waters to those working in the territorial sea, an area that extends up to 12 nautical miles from the mean low-water line. This Government takes minimum wage enforcement seriously and is committed to ensuring all employers pay their workers correctly. We continue to invest heavily in minimum wage enforcement, increasing the budget to over £26 million for 2018/19, up from £13 million in 2015/16. In addition to following up on every worker complaint received, HMRC undertake proactive investigations and conduct awareness raising activities amongst both employers and workers. Last year, HMRC identified record arrears of £15.6 million, for over 200,000 workers.

Wind Power: Seas and Oceans

Ian Mearns: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, if he will make an assessment of the effect of pre-construction agreements between offshore wind farm owners and contractors on employment (a) conditions, (b) practices and (c) levels.

Kelly Tolhurst: Holding answer received on 19 March 2019



Terms and conditions of employment are for negotiation and agreement between employers and employees (or their representatives). Once agreed they form a legally binding contract of employment. While it is always open to either party to seek to renegotiate the terms of the contract, if the employer changes any of the terms without the employee’s agreement, the employee may be entitled to seek legal redress. Importantly, workers on offshore windfarms are entitled to the same protections as UK workers, including National Minimum Wage for all their work on the installation, construction and maintenance of the windfarms regardless of nationality or where they ordinarily work.

Public Houses: Codes of Practice

Yasmin Qureshi: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, when he plans to begin a review of the Pubs Code.

Kelly Tolhurst: The Government is currently considering the format of the statutory review of the Pubs Code which will cover the operation of the Code from when it came into force to 31 March 2019.

Parental Leave

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions on additional paid leave for (a) parents of premature babies and (b) multiple birth parents.

Kelly Tolhurst: The Department is conducting a short, focussed internal review of the provisions for parents of premature babies and sick babies and those that experience multiple births. Preliminary work on this has now completed and my officials have identified potential areas for further work and options for taking this forward, including opportunities to work with other Government Departments. I expect to be in a position to say more about this in due course.

Trading Standards: Finance

Ruth Cadbury: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what recent assessment he has made of the adequacy of funding for the enforcement of trading standards.

Kelly Tolhurst: Trading Standards services are provided by local authorities, who operate independently from central government and are responsible for their own funding decisions. BEIS funds National Trading Standards (NTS) and Trading Standards Scotland (TSS) to prioritise and coordinate national and regional consumer enforcement in England, Wales and Scotland respectively. The Government is considering options to ensure that our system of consumer protection provides a robust response to both local and national threats following the Modernising Consumer Markets Green Paper in 2018.

Hydrogen: North of England

Anna Turley: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, with reference to the H21 North of England report by H21 et al. published in November 2018, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of the proposals in that report to convert the gas networks across the North of England to hydrogen.

Claire Perry: I welcome the contribution this study makes to the evidence base on the potential approaches to decarbonising how we heat our homes, businesses and industry. There is no clear consensus on how best to decarbonise heat at scale. Using the gas grid to transport hydrogen is one of several potential approaches, which include heat networks, heat pumps and biogas. The government's review of the evidence base on approaches to decarbonising heat is set out in our report ‘Clean Growth: Transforming Heating’.

Agency Workers: Equal Pay

Stephanie Peacock: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, pursuant to his oral contribution of 6 March 2019, Official Report, column 994, on the Swedish derogation, whether he has finished reflecting upon the representations he has received from the trade unions on the timing of the abolition of the Swedish derogation; and what the outcome has been of his reflections.

Kelly Tolhurst: Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Foreign and Commonwealth Office

Sayed Alwadaei

Dawn Butler: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, further to the Answer of 4 February 2019 to Question HL13127, whether his Department relies on the assurances provided by the Bahraini Government in assessing the case of Sayed Ahmed Alwadaei’s family members; and what assessment the Government has made of information provided by independent bodies such as the UN, Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch on this matter.

Alistair Burt: The British Government takes note of a number of sources of information on these issues; including publications by the UN and other Non Governmental Organisations. We continue to encourage those with concerns about treatment in detention to raise them with the appropriate Bahraini human rights oversight body. We encourage the oversight bodies in Bahrain to carry out thorough and swift investigations into any such claims.

Sayed Alwadaei

Dawn Butler: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, whether officials from his Department attended the proceedings in Bahrain on 25 February 2019 in which the three-year prison sentences against family members of Sayed Alwadaei were upheld.

Alistair Burt: Officials from our Embassy in Manama attended the court session for the individuals in question. We continue to monitor the cases of these individuals.

Sayed Alwadaei

Dawn Butler: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with his counterpart in Bahrain on the case of the family members Sayed Ahmed Alwadaei.

Alistair Burt: We continue to raise the cases of Bahraini nationals Hajer Mansoor Hassan, Sayed Nazar Al Wadaei and Mahmood Marzooq Mansoor at senior levels with the Bahraini Government.

Press Freedom

Liz Saville Roberts: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps he is taking to ensure that journalists' trade unions internationally are (a) consulted on the UK's media freedom campaign, and (b) invited to participate in his Department's London conference on media freedom in July 2019.

Mark Field: ​We are commited to and are in the process of consulting very widely with all relevant civil society bodies, including journalists' trade unions, on the design of our media freedom campaign and the July conference. We encourage all interested parties to get in touch with us.

Colombia: Administration of Justice

Clive Efford: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, whether he plans to make representations to his counterpart in Colombia on approving the statutory law that will give the Special Jurisdiction for Peace in that country the provisions it needs to guarantee truth, justice, reparation and non-repetition in accordance with the 2016 peace agreement between the Government of Colombia and the revolutionary armed forces of Colombia - people's army; and if he will make a statement.

Sir Alan Duncan: The Special Jurisdiction for Peace continues to function under currently existing legal provisions despite the recent objections of President Duque to certain articles of the law. However, we remain concerned that a delay in finalising the legal underpinning of the transitional justice system risks undermining its authority and reducing cooperation of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC).Our Ambassador in Bogota informed President Duque of Colombia of the UK position on the Special Jurisdiction for Peace on 11 March during a briefing for the international community. He emphasised the importance of finalising the legal underpinning for the transitional justice system as quickly as possible to mitigate the risk of undermining its authority and reducing cooperation with the FARC. The UK permanent representative to the UN met Colombian Foreign Minister Holmes Trujillo on 15 March to reiterate the importance of a speedy process the positive signal that accelerating the implementation of the Peace Agreement would send.

Colombia: Administration of Justice

Clive Efford: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, if we will make representations to the Government of Colombia on ensuring that the Special Jurisdiction for Peace is consolidated in law in that country in accordance with the terms of the 2016 peace agreement between the Government of Colombia and the revolutionary armed forces of Colombia - people's army; and if he will make a statement.

Sir Alan Duncan: The Special Jurisdiction for Peace continues to function under currently existing legal provisions despite the recent objections of President Duque to certain articles of the law. However, we remain concerned that a delay in finalising the legal underpinning of the transitional justice system risks undermining its authority and reducing cooperation of theRevolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC).Our Ambassador in Bogota informed President Duque of Colombia of the UK position on the Special Jurisdiction for Peace on 11 March during a briefing for the international community. He emphasised the importance of finalising the legal underpinning for the transitional justice system as quickly as possible to mitigate the risk of undermining its authority and reducing cooperation with the FARC. The UK permanent representative to the UN met Colombian Foreign Minister Holmes Trujillo on 15 March to reiterate the importance of a speedy process and the positive signal that accelerating the implementation of the Peace Agreement would send.

Iran: BBC Persian Service

Catherine West: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what  representations he has made in the last three months to (a) the Iranian Ambassador in London and (b) the Government of Iran on the reported ongoing targeting and harassment of BBC Persian Service journalists and their families.

Alistair Burt: We continue to raise the issue of BBC Persian at all levels with the Iranian Government. Most recently, this was through the UK’s statement at the Interactive Dialogue with the Special Rapporteur for Human Rights in Iran, on 11 March.

Rugby: World Cup

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps the Government is taking to (a) update and (b) promote travel vaccination advice in advance of the 2019 Rugby World Cup in Japan.

Mark Field: We are all looking forward to the Rugby World Cup in Japan in September 2019 and advise all British nationals wishing to travel to obtain adequate travel and medical insurance for the trip in good time. Advice on all aspects of travel to Japan, including vaccinations, can be found on our FCO travel advice pages which are regularly updated and can be found at https://www.gov.uk/foreign-travel-advice/japan also see https://www.gov.uk/government/news/rugby-world-cup-2019.​

Treaties

Neil O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, if he will list the treaties from which the UK has unilaterally withdrawn since 1 January 1988.

Sir Alan Duncan: ​The UK has unilaterally withdrawn from 52 treaties since 1 January 1988. All of these have been multilateral treaties.

United Arab Emirates: British Nationals Abroad

Tom Brake: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs,  what assessment his Department has made of the potential merits of revising its advice to UK citizens travelling to the United Arab Emirates as a result of the arrest of Matthew Hedges and Ali Issa Ahmad.

Alistair Burt: We keep all Foreign and Commonwealth Office travel advice, including for the United Arab Emirates, under constant review to ensure it reflects our assessment of risk to British nationals and includes information and advice on the most relevant issues for British nationals travelling or living abroad.

Chechnya: Human Rights

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with his Russian counterpart on human rights in Chechnya; and if he will make a statement.

Sir Alan Duncan: We are deeply concerned about the human rights situation in Chechnya, and have raised this in several public statements, as well as bilaterally with Russia. The UK, joined by 31 other countries, delivered a statement to the UN Human Rights Council on the persecution of LGBT people in Chechnya on 18 March. I also raised this issue directly with my Russian counterpart, First Deputy Foreign Minister Vladimir Titov, in the margins of the Munich Security Conference in February. On 19 March, the Foreign Secretary publicly called for the release of Chechen human rights activist Oyub Titiev, following his sentencing to four years in prison. In November 2018, the UK was one of 16 countries to invoke the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe Moscow Mechanism to investigate allegations of human rights abuses in Chechnya. We will continue to urge Russia to follow the recommendations outlined in the report of the Moscow Mechanism.

Yemen: Peace Negotiations

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent assessment he has made of the viability of the ceasefire agreement in Yemen, and if he will make a statement.

Alistair Burt: Since it came into effect in Hodeidah on 18 December, the fragile ceasefire has continued to hold and there has been a general de-escalation by both sides around the city. We are aware of reports of frontline incidents and skirmishing but these remain low. We urge all parties to support and facilitate the UN's efforts and to implement the agreements reached during the Stockholm talks.

Iran: Baha'i Faith

Lloyd Russell-Moyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, whether his Department has made representations to the UN's Special Rapporteur on the human rights of the Baha'i in the Islamic Republic of Iran.

Alistair Burt: ​We are particularly concerned by the continuing systematic discrimination, harassment and targeting of the Baha'i community in Iran. At the Human Rights Council in March 2019, the UK strongly supported the renewal of the mandate of the UN Special Rapporteur on the Situation of Human Rights in Iran and supports the UN Special Rapporteur's assessment that discrimination against the Baha'i community in Iran is legally sanctioned by a lack of constitutional recognition and the absence of other legal protections for adherents of this faith. We have called on Iran to allow him access to the country so that he can carry out his mandate, and we encourage Iran to use this opportunity to engage with the international community.

Philippines: Terrorism

Mr Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, if he will make representations to his counterpart in the Philippines on apprehending those responsible for bombing a church in that country in January 2019.

Mark Field: ​The British Government condemned the appalling bomb attacks on the Catholic Cathedral on the island of Jolo in Sulu province on Sunday 27 January. Our prayers are with all the victims and their loved ones. The Foreign Secretary, British Ambassador to the Philippines Daniel Pruce and I expressed the UK's condemnation of the attack in public messages.The UK stands with the Philippines against terror. My officials continue to work with and discuss counter terrorism priorities with the Philippines authorities, including events surrounding the Jolo bomb attack.

Turki bin Abdullah Al Saud

Chris Law: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what representations he has made to his Saudi counterpart on the imprisonment of Prince Turki bin Abdullah.

Alistair Burt: ​We continue to monitor the cases of those detained under Saudi Arabia's anti-corruption drive, including Prince Turki bin Abdullah. The Saudi Arabian authorities have announced that some individuals are facing legal proceedings.

Chevening

Tulip Siddiq: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how many times he has used Chevening House for (a) Departmental and (b) personal uses since he took office; and what the duration was of each of those occasions.

Sir Alan Duncan: Chevening House is not funded by the Government and is the responsibility of its trustees. The Prime Minister decides who occupies the building. It is currently shared by the Foreign Secretary, the Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union and the Secretary of State for International Trade.Since taking office, the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs has used Chevening House for departmental use once. The Secretary of State is a protected person, therefore for security reasons we do not disclose his whereabouts during his personal time.

Guyana: Politics and Government

Helen Goodman: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what representations he has made to the Government of Guyana on the need to call elections within the constitutional time limit following the loss of a no confidence vote in December 2018.

Sir Alan Duncan: Guyana's Court of Appeal is expected to rule on this matter shortly. The UK Government continues to encourage both parties to work together to reach a resolution which meets Guyana's constitutional provisions. The British High Commissioner to Guyana has on several occasions stressed the importance of respecting the Constitution, most recently during a speech at the Georgetown Chamber of Commerce and Industry on 18 March.

Cabinet Office

Civil Service: Stress

Chris Ruane: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the Answer of 18 March 2019 to Question 231901, whether he has made an assessment of the potential benefits of mindfulness-based interventions in the reduction of work-based stress.

Oliver Dowden: The Civil Service does not collect data on the practice of mindfulness on the reduction of work-based stress and positive influence on well-being.We are aware that mindfulness training can have a positive impact on wellbeing. Mindfulness interventions, including face-to-face sessions and digital wellbeing apps, are used across the Civil Service.

Chronic Illnesses

Chris Ruane: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what estimate he has made of the proportion of the population living with a limiting long term illness in (a) Denbighshire, (b) Wales and (c) the UK.

Chloe Smith: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the Authority to reply.



UKSA Response
(PDF Document, 66.84 KB)

Department of Health and Social Care

HIV Infection

Chuka Umunna: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to ensure the ending of new HIV transmissions in England by 2030.

Steve Brine: The Government is committed to ending new transmissions of HIV in England by 2030. Work is underway with partners to discuss how this work will be taken forward.

Breast Cancer: Health Education

Rosie Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will take steps to promote awareness of Asda’s Tickled Pink campaign in order to encourage people to check their breasts.

Rosie Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will make it his policy to (a) promote Asda’s Tickled Pink campaign and (b) encourage women to be their breast friend to increase early diagnosis rates.

Steve Brine: The Department welcomes the Asda ‘Tickled Pink’ campaign which they are running with two cancer charities. The Department encourages all women to be breast aware, and urges anyone with any concerns to also discuss these with their general practitioner. Public Health England has run its ‘Be Clear on Cancer’ campaigns in partnership with Cancer Research UK since 2011 and are supported by a number of charities, for example Breast Cancer Now, Breast Cancer Care and Cancer Research UK, and other public and private sector partners.

NHS 111: Ambulance Services

Rosie Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what proportion of calls to the (a) NHS 111 service and (b) NHS 111 BSL service resulted in the dispatch of an ambulance in the last year for which figures are available.

Stephen Hammond: NHS England publishes monthly performance data for the NHS 111 service at the following link: https://www.england.nhs.uk/statistics/statistical-work-areas/nhs-111-minimum-data-set/statistical-work-areas-nhs-111-minimum-data-set-nhs-111-minimum-data-set-2018-19/ The following table provides data for ambulance dispositions from NHS 111, including the NHS 111 British Sign Language (BSL) service. Total calls to NHS 111Calls to the NHS 111 BSL Service (including in total calls)Number of calls triaged1Ambulance dispatches2Ambulance dispatches (% of calls triaged)2017-18 total15,964,08045812,655,7451,611,44712.7%2018-19 to date15,335,63341111,965,1731,587,58413.3%2018 total16,777,85042713,061,9371,705,94213.1%12 months to Feb 201916,899,86945413,143,8661,731,70113.2%Source: NHS England Notes: 1A triaged call is one where the clinical assessment tool has been opened and used.2Final NHS Pathways disposition was a referral to the Ambulance Service. Further clinical assessment within the Integrated Urgent Care (NHS 111) or 999 service areas may have indicated that an ambulance response and/or conveyance was not required. The actual percentage resulting in an ambulance being dispatched may therefore be lower.

Methadone

Alison Thewliss: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to ensure the continuation of supply of methadone in the event of the UK leaving the EU without a deal.

Stephen Hammond: Leaving the European Union with a deal remains the Government’s top priority. However, as a responsible Government we must plan for every possible outcome including ‘no deal’. The Department has published guidance to industry and the health and care system to allow them to make informed plans and preparations. This is available on GOV.UK. The Government has been working closely with industry to ensure the supply of medicines, including methadone, can continue uninterrupted in the event of a ‘no deal’ EU exit. Plans include building stockpiles, providing additional warehousing space and buying freight capacity on alternative ferry routes. The Department, together with industry and the National Health Service, has analysed the supply chains of 12,300 medicines and we are grateful for excellent engagement from all parties, which means our plans are well advanced. In August 2018, the Department wrote to all pharmaceutical companies that supply prescription-only and pharmacy medicines, to the United Kingdom that come from or via, the EU/European Economic Area, asking them to ensure a minimum of six weeks’ additional supply in the UK, over and above existing business-as-usual buffer stocks, by 29 March 2019 in the event of a ‘no deal’ EU exit. The Department has put in place a multi-layered approach to minimise any supply disruption. We are confident that, if everyone does what they need to do, the supply of medicines and medical products will be uninterrupted.

Department of Health and Social Care: Consultants

Peter Dowd: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many consultants his Department has hired in each year since 2016; and what the cost to the public purse of that process has been.

Caroline Dinenage: Holding answer received on 22 March 2019



The Department contracts for the delivery of consultancy services from companies and does not keep central records of the number nor the identities of individual management consultants or staff used to deliver services for each contract to the Department.I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave to the hon. Member for Ribble Valley (Mr Nigel Evans) on 25 February to Question 221999.

Tomography: Oxfordshire

Anneliese Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 15 March 2019 to Question 231557 on Tomography: Procurement, what additional engagement was undertaken by the NHS on the effect of the proposed privatisation of the PET-CT scan service in Oxford on the location of those services outside Oxford.

Steve Brine: No additional engagement has been undertaken by NHS England to that outlined in the previous response.

Medical Laboratory Scientific Officers: Resignations

Helen Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many biomedical scientists left hospital screening laboratories in (a) 2018 and (b) 2019; and what steps his Department is taking to ensure laboratories retain highly skilled staff.

Steve Brine: No figures are available specifically for biomedical scientists within screening laboratories, however, the available figures state that there were 1,505 leavers from the selected Healthcare Scientist Care Setting group in National Health Service trusts and clinical commissioning groups over the period 30 September 2017 to 30 September 2018. This staff group includes healthcare scientists within a care setting of blood sciences, cellular sciences, genetics and infection sciences. The NHS Long Term Plan sets out specific workforce actions developed by NHS Improvement and others to have positive impact for workforces, including the screening and diagnostic workforce. NHS Improvement and the Department will discuss these actions when the education and training budget for Health Education England is set in 2019. This includes a proposal to recruit an additional 1,500 clinical and diagnostic staff across seven priority specialisms between 2018 and 2021. Professor Sir Mike Richards is leading a major review of national cancer screening programme pathways as part of the NHS Long Term Plan’s renewed drive to improve care and save lives. Professor Richards’ review is due later this year. Specifically, in relation to cervical cancer screening, to maintain the service and accommodate current staffing levels, a majority of existing pilot sites carrying out the new human papilloma virus (HPV) testing and some non-pilot sites have already converted more of their cervical screening activity to HPV primary screening, freeing up cytology capacity.

Cervical Cancer: Screening

Helen Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what the current average time is for cervical screening results in each laboratory linked to each NHS Trust and Foundation Trust in London; and what the average waiting time for those results is in England.

Steve Brine: The latest published data for 2017/18 indicated that 58.6% of women received the results of their test within 14 days; 23% of women were waiting over three weeks. The 2017/18 data indicates that 69.6% of women across London received their cervical screening results within 14 days. The following table shows the average waiting time for cervical screening results in laboratories linked to each National Health Service trust and foundation trust in London: Cytology LabAverage waiting time (days)Northwick Park (London North West University Healthcare NHS Trust)22Viapath (Guy’s and St Thomas’)28Barts42Imperial15Queen’s (Barking, Havering and Redbridge University Hospitals NHS Trust)35Princess Royal University Hospital28St George’s30Health Services Laboratory (North Central London)22St HelierNo Response

Cervical Cancer: Screening

Helen Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment his Department has made of the effect on (a) staffing levels and (b) waiting times of the centralisation of cervical screening laboratories.

Steve Brine: Prior to the agreement on the optimum number of centralised laboratories to deliver the new human papilloma virus (HPV) primary screening to replace cytology, consideration was given to how this would impact on the existing workforce. A survey of the existing workforce was undertaken by the British Association of Cytopathologists in 2017 and the outcomes of this arising was included amongst further consideration when confirming the maximum number of laboratories required to deliver the service across the country. The planned introduction of HPV primary screening and reconfiguration of laboratories has impacted on cytology workforce retention and recruitment rates, which led to an increase in the waiting time for cervical screening results in 2016-17 and 2017-18. Unpublished management data has also shown an improvement in turnaround times in the last quarter of 2018/19. As HPV testing takes over from cytology testing during 2019, it is expected that waiting times will reduce significantly. Nevertheless, the 14-day turnaround time for test results to be provided remains a vital target for the NHS Cervical Screening Programme. The roll-out of HPV primary screening into the NHS Cervical Cancer Screening Programme in England is due to be rolled out in December 2019. This could prevent around 600 cancers a year.

Prescriptions: Universal Credit

Ian Austin: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many penalty notices were issued by the NHSBSA in Dudley prior to the rollout of universal credit in each year for which information is available.

Ian Austin: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many penalty notices have been issued by the NHSBSA in Dudley since the rollout of universal credit.

Steve Brine: The number of prescription and dental penalty charge notices issued prior to universal credit (UC) rollout in Dudley by calendar year is provided in the following table: Prior to the rollout of UC in Dudley by calendar yearPrescription penalty charge notice issuedDental penalty charge notice issued2012Not held512013Not held72020141,0182,57020154,3402,93720167,9144,1902017 - until June1,939 until June2,234 until June  The number of prescription and dental penalty charge notices issued since the rollout of UC in Dudley by calendar year is provided in the following table: After the rollout of UC in Dudley by calendar yearPrescription penalty charge notice issuedDental penalty charge notice issued2017 – from July6,653 * from July2,517 * from July20184,4674,667 Notes: - The following postcodes were used to collate data for the Dudley area: B62, B63, B64, B65, DY1, DY2, DY3, DY4, DY5, DY6, DY7, DY8, DY9, WV1, WV4 - UC commenced roll out in the Dudley area from July 2017 so this date has been used in the data collation. The data represents Penalty Charge Notices sent out against all exemption types ticked by the patient where an exemption could not be verified.

Mental Illness: Children and Young People

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to NHS Digital publication Mental Health of Children and Young People in England 2017, what assessment he has made of the factors influencing the upward trend of 5-15 year olds reporting at least one mental health disorder.

Jackie Doyle-Price: The Department of Health and Social Care has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Health Services: Reciprocal Arrangements

Tom Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many European Health Insurance Cards in circulation have been issued to people with a registered disability.

Tom Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many European Health Insurance Cards in circulation have been issued to people with a registered disability in each of the nations of the UK.

Stephen Hammond: The Department does not hold the data on the number of people with a registered disability. This is not part of the eligibility criteria that is requested during the application process.

Health Services: British Nationals Abroad

Stephen Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the 20-day minimum threshold charge for UK citizens and British passport holders who have used the NHS but now live overseas on their (a) finances and (b) mental wellbeing.

Stephen Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the 20-day minimum threshold charge for those British Citizens who live overseas and use the emergency services when in the UK on their willingness to use such services and consequent effect on their health and mental wellbeing.

Stephen Hammond: The Department is not aware of the 20-day minimum threshold charge in relation to United Kingdom citizens and British passport holders who have used the National Health Service but now live overseas and therefore has made no assessment of its impact.

Tomography: Oxfordshire

Layla Moran: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 6 March 2019 to Question 227413 on Tomography: Inhealthcare, what meetings he held with representatives from (a) Oxford University Hospitals Trust, (b) InHealth and (c) Oxfordshire CCG prior to awarding the PET-CT scanning contract to InHealth.

Steve Brine: My Rt. hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care has not met with any representatives of Oxford University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, InHealth Group or Oxfordshire Clinical Commissioning Group.

Erasmus+ Programme

Gordon Marsden: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department has taken to secure EU healthcare benefits for UK students studying in the EU after September 2019 on the Erasmus+ programme in the event that the UK leaves the EU without a deal.

Gordon Marsden: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what discussions he has had with (a) the Secretary of State for Education, (b) NHS executives and (c) the EU on the status of the EU health insurance card for UK students studying abroad from September 2019 in the event of the UK leaving the EU without a deal.

Stephen Hammond: On 19 March 2019, I laid a Written Ministerial Statement (HCWS1429) on the Department’s plans for the continuity of reciprocal healthcare arrangements in the event we exit the European Union without a deal. This statement includes specific guidance for students and with regards to European Health Insurance Cards (EHICs). Discussions about EHICs, including for students, forms part of the broader negotiations with the European Commission and Member States about continued reciprocal healthcare arrangements. Subject to Parliament ratifying the Withdrawal Agreement, current reciprocal healthcare rights will continue during the implementation period until 31 December 2020. This includes EHICs for students. In a ‘no deal’ scenario, the United Kingdom Government has proposed to EU Member States that we should maintain the existing healthcare arrangements until 31 December 2020, with the aim of minimising disruption to UK nationals’ and EU citizens’ healthcare provision. The UK cannot unilaterally guarantee people’s healthcare cover if they live abroad, as this depends on decisions by Member States. Currently, students residing in the UK who are going on a placement abroad are entitled to a UK-issued EHIC to cover healthcare costs for the duration of their placement. We cannot guarantee that this will continue for all EU Member States in the event of a ‘no deal’ scenario where the existing arrangements are not extended. UK nationals living in or travelling to the EU should ensure they are taking the necessary steps to prepare including taking out comprehensive health insurance and ensuring they access up-to-date information on GOV.UK and NHS.UK at the following links: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/overseas-living-in-guides https://www.nhs.uk/using-the-nhs/healthcare-abroad/healthcare-when-travelling-abroad/travelling-in-the-european-economic-area-eea-and-switzerland/

Department for International Development

UNRWA: Finance

Bill Wiggin: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what recent assessment she has made of the long-term viability of the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestinian refugees.

Alistair Burt: Following US cuts in 2018, the international community was able to step up and meet the shortfall to UNRWA’s budget, allowing it to continue to provide essential basic services to Palestinian refugees in Gaza, the West Bank, Syria, Lebanon and Jordan. However, we recognise that these refugee populations need UNRWA to be on a more secure financial footing. To that end, the UK is working with UNRWA and other donors to help ensure its sustainability. This includes finding further cost savings reforms, diversifying donor income, and encouraging multi-year funding commitments. The UK is a leading donor to UNRWA and we plan to provide up to £80m to UNRWA overall over the next two years. However, a long-term solution requires a just, fair, agreed and realistic settlement for Palestinian refugees. Until that happens the UK remains firmly committed to supporting UNRWA and Palestinian refugees.

South Sudan: Peace Negotiations

Bridget Phillipson: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what her policy is on maintaining levels of funding for conflict reduction projects in South Sudan.

Alistair Burt: The UK remains committed to reducing conflict in South Sudan. We support the ongoing peace process, including by providing funding through the Conflict Stability and Security Fund to region led monitoring bodies – the Revitalised Joint Monitoring and Evaluation Commission (R-JMEC) and the Ceasefire and Transitional Security Arrangements Monitoring and Verification Mechanism (CTSAMVM). We also provide support to civil society to help hold the parties accountable to the peace deal, and to the South Sudan Council of Churches for their dialogue and reconciliation work. In the coming months we will launch a Peacebuilding Opportunities Fund to foster innovative and sustainable peacebuilding initiatives, primarily at the local level.

Developing Countries: Climate Change

Patrick Grady: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what steps her Department is taking to mitigate the effects of climate change on the ability of developing countries to provide adequate nutrition for their populations.

Alistair Burt: DFID is mitigating the impact of climate change on nutrition both by enabling countries to adapt to the changing climate and to prepare systems to better manage the effects of climate shocks. For example, DFID is investing in strengthening nutrition services in countries like Kenya, and across the Sahel, so they are better able to scale-up to deal with increases in malnutrition that can arise due to climate-related shocks.

Developing Countries: Malnutrition

Patrick Grady: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what bilateral discussions she has had with other donor Governments on support for nutrition programmes following the publication of the Global Nutrition Report 2018.

Alistair Burt: As a Human Capital Champion, the Secretary of State for International Development is advocating for greater investment in improved human capital outcomes, which include reduced childhood stunting. DFID officials also continue to play a leading role in global discussions on addressing malnutrition, for example through our work with Japan to prepare for the Global Nutrition Summit in 2020.

Department for Education

Sanitary Protection: Secondary Education

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to Spring Statement 2019, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of providing every secondary school age female with a reusable menstrual cup.

Nadhim Zahawi: No one should be held back from reaching their potential because of their gender or background. That is why my right hon. Friend, the Chancellor of the Exchequer announced in his Spring Statement on 13 March 2019 that the Department for Education will lead a scheme to provide access to free sanitary products in all secondary schools and colleges in England. We are committed to encouraging the use of sustainable products where possible and will work with stakeholders to explore whether this can be integrated into the scheme.

Schools: Standards

James Cartlidge: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment he has made of the degree to which standards are adequately and continuously assessed by OFSTED at schools where the most recent inspection was outstanding; and if he will make a statement.

Nick Gibb: I wrote to Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector, Amanda Spielman, on 3 December setting out the Department’s position regarding the inspection of outstanding schools. A copy of this letter is attached. Outstanding schools are exempt from routine Ofsted inspection but continue to be risk assessed annually. Ofsted has the power to inspect any school at any time if there are concerns about the quality of provision or safety of pupils.



232611_Nick_Gibb_to_Amanda_Spielman_3_Dec
(PDF Document, 157.7 KB)

Chronic Fatigue Syndrome: Education

Ruth Cadbury: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps he's taken to support access to schooling for children with Chronic Fatigue Syndrome.

Nadhim Zahawi: We are clear that all pupils with medical conditions are properly supported in school so that they can play a full and active role in school life, remain healthy, achieve their academic potential and have the same opportunities as any other child. In September 2014, we introduced the duty to require governing bodies to make arrangements to support their pupils with medical conditions and provided statutory guidance that outlines schools’ responsibilities in this area, available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/supporting-pupils-at-school-with-medical-conditions--3. Schools also have duties under the Equality Act 2010 to make reasonable adjustments and not to discriminate against disabled children, including those with long-term health conditions, in relation to their access to education and associated services. Schools must make reasonable adjustments to their practices, procedures and policies to ensure that they are not putting those with long-term health problems at a substantial disadvantage.

Social Services: Finance

Rosie Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment he has made of the implications for his policies of the Action for Children press release entitled Children's funding slashed by a third per child leaving thousands at risk of falling into crisis, dated 26 February 2019.

Rosie Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to the Action for Children press release entitled Children's funding slashed by a third per child, leaving thousands at risk of falling into crisis, dated 26 February 2019, what recent assessment he has made of the adequacy of the level of funding for children’s services.

Nadhim Zahawi: At Autumn Budget my right hon. Friend, the Chancellor announced an extra £410 million to address pressures on social care services, along with £84 million over five years to support up to 20 local authorities to improve their social work practice and decision-making, enabling them to work more effectively with the most vulnerable children and their families.This builds on the £200 billion government has already made available to councils up to 2020 to provide services in the best interests of local residents, including those for children and young people.We are also working closely with the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government and the sector to ensure decisions around core funding made at Spending Review, and how it is shared between local authorities as part of the review of relative needs and resources, are informed by the best available evidence.The government will continue to work closely with the sector to consider long-term children’s services funding as part of the upcoming Spending Review.

Early Language, Literacy and Communication Apps Expert Panel

Angela Rayner: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what meetings are scheduled of his Department's advisory panel on early years, language, literacy and communication apps.

Nadhim Zahawi: The independently appointed advisory panel met for the first time on 27 February. The panel is due to meet again on 16 April when they intend to finalise the assessment criteria they will use to award quality marks; subsequent meetings have not yet been confirmed.

Department for Education: Consultants

Peter Dowd: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many consultants his Department has hired in each year since 2016; and at what cost to the public purse.

Anne Milton: Information regarding the number of consultants that the department has hired in each year since 2016 is not held centrally. This is because it is a decentralised process and numbers are not collected.

Schools: Standards

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if his Department will take steps to ensure that the proportion of students at a school receiving private tuition is taken into account when evaluating a school's performance.

Nick Gibb: This is a matter for Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector, Amanda Spielman. I have asked her to write to the hon. Member and a copy of her reply will be placed in the Libraries of both Houses.

Special Educational Needs

Bridget Phillipson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what discussion he has had with the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities, and Local Governments on the establishment of a cross-Government plan for supporting children with speech, learning, and communication needs.

Nadhim Zahawi: The department is committed to supporting children and young people with speech, language and communication needs, as set out in our response to the ‘Bercow: Ten Years On’ review on 23 October 2018. A downloadable copy of the government response can be found here: https://www.bercow10yearson.com/. The department continues to engage with a range of government departments to reinforce this commitment.

Pupils: Sanitary Protection

Layla Moran: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps his Department is taking to provide free sanitary products to girls in primary schools.

Nadhim Zahawi: No one should be held back from reaching their potential because of their gender or background. That is why my right hon. Friend, the Chancellor of the Exchequer announced in his Spring Statement on 13 March 2019 that the Department for Education will lead a scheme to provide access to free sanitary products in all secondary schools and colleges in England. As we develop the plans, we will consider options for supporting primary school children.

Schools: Opening Hours

Paul Farrelly: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what estimate has he made of the number of schools closing early as a result of a lack of resources.

Nick Gibb: Information on when schools finish their school day is not held centrally.All maintained schools are required to educate pupils for at least 380 sessions each school year. They cannot reduce the length of the school week if this would take the total number of sessions below that.All schools have the autonomy to decide the structure and duration of their school day, which includes the flexibility to decide when their school day should start and finish. Where schools use this flexibility, they should take into account local circumstances and the needs of their students and staff.In the event that a school decides to make changes to its school day the Department would encourage them to do this in consultation with parents. It is the Department’s expectation that the school should act reasonably when making such decisions; giving parents notice and considering the impacts on those affected.

Teachers: English Language

Helen Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what estimate he has made of the number of people teaching English in secondary schools who do not have a degree in that subject.

Helen Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what estimate he has made of the number of people teaching (a) French, (b) German and (c) Spanish in secondary schools who do not have a degree in that language.

Nick Gibb: The information requested is published in table 12 of the publication ‘School Workforce in England, November 2017’ available at the following web link:https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/school-workforce-in-england-november-2017.

Children in Care

Helen Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many looked-after children there were in (a) Warrington, (b) the North West and (c) England in each of the last five years for which figures are available.

Nadhim Zahawi: The latest information on the number of looked after children at 31 March 2018 for the last five years by local authority, region and for England can be found in table LAA1 in the statistical release ‘Children Looked After in England: Including Adoption: 2017 to 2018’ at: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/children-looked-after-in-england-including-adoption-2017-to-2018.

Social Services: Warrington

Helen Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what recent assessment he has made of the financial sustainability of children's services in Warrington.

Nadhim Zahawi: Funding for children’s services is made available through the Local Government Finance Settlement. We are in the final year of a multi-year settlement deal – worth over £200 billion in the 5 years to 2020.At the Autumn Budget 2018, the government made £410 million available to local authorities, in 2019/20, for adult and children social care. The government also announced £84 million in targeted, evidence-based interventions which will transform services to reduce demand, saving money for local authorities but most importantly, improving the quality of services for our most vulnerable children.The government will continue to work closely with the sector to consider long-term children’s services funding as part of the Spending Review.

Erasmus+ Programme

Gordon Marsden: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what discussions he has had with (a) university groups and (b) UUK on the potential effect of the UK leaving the EU without a deal on UK students participating in the Erasmus+ programme in Europe from September 2019.

Gordon Marsden: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps his Department has taken to create an alternative to the Erasmus+ programme for UK students in the event that the UK leaves the EU without a deal.

Chris Skidmore: The government values international exchange and collaboration in education and training as part of its vision for a global Britain and therefore, irrespective of the outcome of Article 50 negotiations with the EU, the government wants UK and European countries to continue to give young people and students the chance to benefit from each other’s world leading universities post-exit.My right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Education, my officials and I meet with representatives of universities and sector associations regularly, including Universities UK, to discuss the Department for Education agenda, and that has included the question of participation in the Erasmus+ programme. In our preparations for the UK’s departure from the EU, the department has regularly engaged with a wide number of sector stakeholders on the Erasmus+ programme.It is the duty of a responsible government to prepare for a range of potential outcomes and the Department of Education is preparing for every eventuality. For this reason, the government has committed to cover the payment of awards to UK organisations for all successful (those that are approved directly by the European Commission or by the National Agency and ratified by the European Commission) Erasmus+ bids in the event of ‘no deal’.There are many opportunities for student exchange outside of Erasmus+ and our world-leading higher education providers have a strong track-record of partnering with overseas institutions. UUK evidence suggests around half of mobilities already take place outside Erasmus+.It is not appropriate at this stage to set out any assessment in detail for a domestic alternative due to the ongoing negotiations with the EU. We will always want to ensure value for money for the taxpayer.

Ministry of Justice

Offenders: Foreign Nationals

Mr Andrew Mitchell: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps the Government is taking to ensure that the UK is not seen as a safe haven for people suspected of committing international crimes.

Mr Andrew Mitchell: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what recent assessment he has made of the adequacy of the resources of the (a) Metropolitan Police and (b) CPS to (i) investigate and (ii) prosecute people residing in the UK who are suspected of committing international crimes; and if he will ensure that the investigation and prosecution of such individuals is prioritised.

Mr Andrew Mitchell: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, with reference to the High Court decision not to extradite to Rwanda persons suspected of involvement in the 1994 genocide against the Tutsis, what steps the (a) Metropolitan Police and (b) CPS have taken to comply with the Government's obligations under national and international law to investigate and prosecute acts of genocide.

Mr Andrew Mitchell: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps he is taking to strengthen UK co-operation with international partners to ensure the (a) prosecution and (b) extradition of people who commit international crimes.

Edward Argar: The Ministry of Justice does not hold the information requested, nor does it hold policy responsibility for these matters. Questions regarding these matters should be directed to the relevant departments. The following departments are responsible for these matters:the Home Office Police is responsible for the police operations and extradition policy;the Attorney General’s Office is responsible for the operation of prosecutors;The Foreign and Commonwealth Office is responsible for International policy and the International Criminal Court.

Prisoners' Release: Housing

Liz Saville Roberts: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many tents were given to prisoners on discharge from jails in England and Wales in each of the last 12 months.

Liz Saville Roberts: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many tents were issued to people under the supervision of Community Rehabilitation Companies in England and Wales in each of the last 12 months.

Edward Argar: It is vital that everyone leaving prison has somewhere stable and secure to live. Having somewhere stable to live acts as a platform for ex-offenders to be able to access the services and support needed to turn their back on crime for good. We do not hold the data requested since it not our policy to issue tents to service users. The Ministry of Justice works very closely with the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government to improve the accommodation opportunities for those with a history of offending. This includes supporting the delivery of the Rough Sleeping Strategy, which was published in August 2018. As part of this Strategy, the Government is investing £6.4M in a joint pilot to support individuals who have served 12 months or less in custody, and who are at risk of being released as homeless, to secure and maintain accommodation. The two departments are also working together through their membership of the cross-government Reducing Reoffending Board and the cross-government Rough Sleeping and Homelessness Taskforce. Since 1 October 2018, Prisons and Probation providers have been subject to a legal ‘Duty to Refer’ anyone who is homeless or at risk of becoming homeless to the Local Authority. This change means that offenders will receive meaningful housing assistance at an earlier stage, irrespective of their priority need. Furthermore, with the introduction of the enhanced Through the Gate specification to come into effect from 1st April 2019, CRC’s will have the responsibility of ensuring that accommodation needs are addressed for cohorts under their supervision.

Prison Officers: Recruitment

Liz Saville Roberts: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what lessons have been learned from recent prison officer recruitment campaigns.

Edward Argar: As part of the Prison Safety and Reform White Paper, published in November 2016, the Government announced an intention to increase prison officer numbers by 2,500 by the end of 2018. The target was achieved ahead of schedule in March 2018. The recruitment campaign facilitated a number of improvements and lessons learned have been applied across the department. Key to the success of the prison officer campaign was the: Effectiveness of a multi-disciplinary teamData led strategic approach that drove efficienciesHMRC reference checks that reduced time in security vetting checksUse of Civil Service Success Profiles which provided a better understanding of the role with a clearer definition of what success looks likeWe continue to work on increasing the diversity of new recruits and ensure that the right people with the right skills are attracted to the careers available across the department.

Prisons: Standards

Liz Saville Roberts: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what additional resources he has provided to prison governors in the last 12 months to help them foster a good working environment for their staff.

Edward Argar: For prisons to be effective, we must get the basics right. This means prisons that are decent, with clean wings and humane living conditions. Last summer, we announced we would be investing £30 million in prisons to enhance safety, security and decency across the estate. As announced in the 2018 Budget, an additional £30 million is also being spent on prisons this financial year on top of the £30 million announced in July. This is going towards further improvements to safety, security and decency on top of those already announced. Prison officer numbers are at their highest in five years, which is vital to ensuring prisons are safe, secure and decent. We have recruited over 4,700 new prison officers across the country since October 2016 to improve safety and help turn offenders’ lives around. The recruitment drive will continue until we reach required levels across the prison estate, ensuring prisons can fulfil their purpose - protecting the public, reducing reoffending and crucially, rehabilitating offenders. As part of the Offender Management in Custody model (OMiC), Key Worker roles are being introduced to support the rehabilitative culture and relationship between Prison Officers and prisoners.

Prisons: Standards

Liz Saville Roberts: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps he has taken in the last 12 months to improve physical conditions in prisons.

Edward Argar: We are getting the basics right through our commitment to deliver up to 10,000 uncrowded decent prison places providing the physical conditions for governors to achieve better educational, training and rehabilitative outcomes. Alongside this, the current estate is being reconfigured so that prisoners will be held in the right place at the right time in their custodial journey to support their rehabilitation. We are undertaking a rolling programme of capital investment to improve the physical condition of prisons. This includes projects at HMP Isle of Wight to improve the heating and upgrade the night sanitation; at HMP Bristol to deliver a new education block; and replacement of windows and cell doors at HMP Liverpool. In addition, last summer we announced an investment of £30 million in prisons to enhance safety, security and decency across the estate. This included a £16m investment in improving the fabric of prisons, targeting those with the most pressing maintenance issues so that we begin to bring them back up to acceptable standards. With this funding we have delivered refurbishments of cells, showers and serveries at a number of prisons including HMPs Liverpool, Wandsworth and Wormwood Scrubs.

Dangerous Driving: Prosecutions

Liz McInnes: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many people were prosecuted for causing death by dangerous driving in 2018.

Liz McInnes: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many people were convicted of causing death by dangerous driving in 2018.

Liz McInnes: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many people convicted of causing death by dangerous driving received a suspended sentence in 2018.

Liz McInnes: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what the average prison sentence was for causing death by dangerous driving in 2018.

Liz McInnes: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many people convicted of causing death by dangerous driving in 2018 received the maximum 14 year jail sentence.

Rory Stewart: The Ministry of Justice will publish data relating to the number of people prosecuted, convicted and given suspended sentences or immediate custodial sentences in 2018 for ‘causing death by dangerous driving’ on 16 May 2019.

Department for International Trade

Exports

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, if he will outline the support services available for export businesses seeking to expand in global markets.

Graham Stuart: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 15 January 2019 to Question 205926. UK exports have continued to increase, with the latest figures showing that nominal exports rose 2.7% (£17.0bn) to £636.6bn in the 12 months ending January 2019. [ONS UK Trade: January 2019]

Hydrogen: Technology

Anna Turley: To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, pursuant to the answer to the Answer of 29 November 2018 to Question 195615 on Hydrogen: Technology, if he will publish his Department’s assessment of how it can support UK-based hydrogen companies.

Graham Stuart: The Department’s assessment of hydrogen technologies is ongoing, working with the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy. There are no plans for a formal publication, however information on how the Department supports UK exporters can be found at www.great.gov.uk.

Borders: Northern Ireland

Tom Brake: To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, what assessment his Department has made of the effect on compliance with WTO rules of the UK applying no controls on the Northern Ireland border in the event that the UK leaves the EU without a deal.

George Hollingbery: We are confident the policy is in line with our WTO obligations, taking into account the unique set of social, political and economic circumstances of Northern Ireland. In developing our policy, alongside WTO rules, we have also had to take into consideration a broader set out of international obligations, including those under the Good Friday Agreement. Furthermore, as we have set out, these arrangements are strictly temporary.

Exports: Saudi Arabia

Lloyd Russell-Moyle: To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, if he will clarify the divergence between his Answer of 11 March 2019 to Question 229204 which stated that two Standard Individual Export Licences for exports to Saudi Arabia were referred to Ministers in 2016 and the FCO's Freedom of Information response ref. 0706-17 which stated that between 1 July 2016 and 30 September 2016, six export licence applications were referred to Ministers.

Graham Stuart: The Freedom of Information response concerned cases referred by FCO to FCO Ministers, whereas the response to Question 229204 referred to cases referred by DIT to DIT Ministers.

Arms Trade: Export Controls

Lloyd Russell-Moyle: To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, what assessment his Department has made of the merits of removing members of the Saudi-led coalition from the white list of countries to which UK companies can ship Category C military goods under Open General Trade Control licences.

Graham Stuart: Countries covered by Open General licences are reviewed in circumstances where the assessment of the licensing position under the Consolidated EU and National Arms Export Licensing Criteria changes. Where we assess that the inclusion of a country on an Open General licence would no longer be consistent with the Consolidated EU and National Arms Export Licensing Criteria, we would remove it. In the case of the Saudi-led coalition, the licensing position is kept under careful and continual review. Our export licensing system allows us to quickly respond to changing facts on the ground and we have powers to revoke, suspend or amend licences if our assessment of the licensing position changes.

Hawk Aircraft: Exports

Mr Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, what steps he is taking to promote the export of Hawk training aircraft to allies.

Graham Stuart: The Department for International Trade continues to work closely with other Government Departments and BAE Systems to promote the world leading Hawk Advanced Jet Training aircraft. Working through an Integrated Campaign Team approach, we continue to pursue the interest of a number of international partners in the platform.As an example of export success, last year Hawk was a key component of the package in support of the successful export of Typhoon to Qatar. We are seeking to build on that success.

Hawk Aircraft: Exports

Mr Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, what steps he has taken to identify potential export opportunities for Hawk training aircraft in (a) Qatar, (b) Kuwait, (c) Bahrain, (d) Austria, (e) Saudi Arabia, (f) India, (g) Malaysia, (h) Slovakia, (i) Spain, (j) Turkey and (k) Japan.

Graham Stuart: The Department for International Trade continues to work closely with other Government Departments and BAE Systems to promote the world leading Hawk Advanced Jet Training aircraft. Working through an Integrated Campaign Team approach, we continue to pursue the interest of a number of international partners in the platform.As an example of export success, last year Hawk was a key component of the package in support of the successful export of Typhoon to Qatar. We are seeking to build on that success.

Trade Remedies (Dumping and Subsidisation) (EU Exit) Regulations 2019

Bill Esterson: To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, what discussions he had with Cabinet colleagues on the timetable for parliamentary scrutiny of the Trade Remedies (Dumping and Subsidization) (EU Exit) Regulations 2019.

George Hollingbery: The Government has brought forward legislation under the Taxation (Cross-border Trade) Act 2018 to establish the UK’s trade remedies system in the event that we leave the EU without a withdrawal agreement. To give business the necessary confidence they will continue to receive protection against injury from unfair trade or unforeseen surges in imports, the provisions were commenced the day after they were laid. However, Parliamentary scrutiny procedures still apply. Cabinet clearance applied to this legislation in the usual way.

Trade Remedies (Dumping and Subsidisation) (EU Exit) Regulations 2019

Bill Esterson: To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, what discussions he had with Cabinet colleagues on the timetable for parliamentary scrutiny of the Trade Remedies (Increase in Imports Causing Serious Injury to UK Producers) (EU Exit) Regulations 2019.

George Hollingbery: The Government has brought forward legislation under the Taxation (Cross-border Trade) Act 2018 to establish the UK’s trade remedies system in the event that we leave the EU without a withdrawal agreement. To give business the necessary confidence they will continue to receive protection against injury from unfair trade or unforeseen surges in imports, the provisions were commenced the day after they were laid. However, Parliamentary scrutiny procedures still apply. Cabinet clearance applied to this legislation in the usual way.

Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government

Rough Sleeping and Homelessness Reduction Taskforce

Neil Coyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 13 March 2019 to Question 229223 on Rough Sleeping and Homelessness Reduction Taskforce, how many meetings the Taskforce has had; and what the date was of its most recent meeting.

Mrs Heather Wheeler: I refer the Hon Member to the answer I gave on the 13 March to question UIN 229223.

Public Lavatories: Disability

Dr Lisa Cameron: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, when he plans to publish his consultation on Changing Places; how long that consultation will run; and what assessment he has made of the potential merits of collaborating with the Scottish Government on its consultation on that policy.

Rishi Sunak: The Government plans to publish the consultation on Changing Places toilets this spring. We have yet to set the time-frame for the consultation, but we want to ensure that everyone has the opportunity to respond. We have already held a roundtable with Changing Places toilet users and those that care for users to learn from their experience and officials from the Department are engaging with officials from the Scottish Government to exchange experience and learning about Changing Places toilets.

Families: Disadvantaged

Lucy Powell: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how much funding has been allocated to the Troubled Families programme (a) nationally, (b) regionally and (c) in each local authority area in each year since that programme has been in operation.

Rishi Sunak: The Department allocated £920 million to the expanded Troubled Families programme which runs between 2015 and 2020.The Troubled Families Programme is a payment by results programme and funding allocations are made on a multi-year rather than an annual basis so local authorities can claim payment when their work with families results in significant and sustained progress.Funding has been allocated to top tier local authorities based on the level of need as indicated by local data taken from the census (population, demographics), levels of deprivation, employment, unemployment and crime statistics.Full breakdown at Annex A and B.



Funding allocation
(Word Document, 39.21 KB)

Families: Disadvantaged

Lucy Powell: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how many families have accessed the Troubled Families programme (a) nationally, (b) regionally and (c) in each local authority area in each year since that programme has been in operation.

Rishi Sunak: The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Temporary Accommodation: Children

Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how many children in each local authority area within the Liverpool City Region have resided in temporary accommodation in each of the most recent five years for which data are available.

Mrs Heather Wheeler: Figures are shown below on the number of children/expected children in each local authority area within the Liverpool City Region in accommodation arranged by the local authority at the end of the financial year for the last five years. ONS CodeLocal AuthorityRegionat 31 March 2018at 31 March 2017at 31 March 2016at 31 March 2015at 31 March 2014E06000006HaltonNW-..6116E08000011KnowsleyNW15101620-E08000012LiverpoolNW8392674129E08000014SeftonNW21812-9E08000013St. HelensNW1632192122E08000015WirralNW2110-20-- figure suppressed due to being less than 5 or to prevent calculation   .. no data received from the local authority

Families: Disadvantaged

Lucy Powell: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how many children have been supported through the Troubled Families programme in each year since that programme has been in operation; and what the ages of those children so supported were.

Rishi Sunak: Since the start of expanded Troubled Families Programme, over 529,000 children between 0-17 years have been supported by the Troubled Families programme.We do not report this per year as families are not limited to how long they can spend on the programme and as a result, children may be on the programme in more than one year.Age groupNumber of individuals0-4yrs142,0005-9yrs165,00010-14yrs156,00015-17yrs66,0000-17yrs529,000   Total number of individuals on TF programme: 864,205Figures correct up to 2017.Time-lags in the national evaluation data mean that the programme’s impact cannot be assessed in real time.

Private Rented Housing: Evictions

Helen Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what plans his Department has to ensure private rented tenants are secure from Section 21 evictions following a complaint.

Mrs Heather Wheeler: Tenants in the private rented sector are protected from retaliatory eviction through the Deregulation Act 2015. This prevents landlords from carrying out a Section 21 eviction for 6 months if the local authority has served either an improvement notice, or a notice of emergency remedial action, which has not been addressed.The government is committed to protecting the rights of tenants and giving them more security. We recently consulted on ways to overcome the barriers to landlords offering longer, more secure tenancies in the private rented sector. The consultation sought views on the effectiveness of the existing protections in the Deregulation Act.We are considering responses to the consultation and will be bringing forward proposals that make the system work better for both tenants and landlords.

Leasehold

Sarah Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what estimate he has made of the average cost of leasehold enfranchisement for (a) leasehold houses, (b) leasehold flats and (c) all leasehold properties in each year since 2010.

Mrs Heather Wheeler: The Government does not collect this data and has made no estimate of the cost. There is no single method for the valuation of enfranchisement of leasehold houses or flats and the Government is aware of unfair practices, which have led to leaseholders paying substantial sums on the premium and costs associated with enfranchising.This is why the Government has asked the Law Commission to review the enfranchisement process to make it simpler, easier, quicker and more cost effective. Its consultation, which included proposals for a unified valuation methodology, closed on 7 January 2019. The Law Commission will publish its final report later this year.

Temporary Accommodation: Children

Lucy Powell: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what estimate he has made of the number of families with children of (a) pre school age, (b) primary age and (c) secondary age or older in temporary accommodation in each of the last four years.

Mrs Heather Wheeler: Figures are shown below on the number of households with dependent children and/or pregnant woman with no other dependents in accommodation arranged by the local authority at the end of the quarter for the last four years. Information on the age of the children is not available. .At 31 March 2018At 31 March 2017At 31 March 2016At 31 March 2015 England6161060,98056,42051,210 London4406044,58042,73040,030 Rest of England1755016,40013,70011,190 England, London and Rest of England totals are rounded to the nearest 10 and include inputted data

High Rise Flats: Insulation

Sarah Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, with reference to the latest Building Safety Programme: Monthly Data Release, whether the 163 private residential buildings which are yet to be remediated represent the (a) total number of private residential blocks affected by ACM cladding or (b) wider developments in which they sit.

Sarah Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, with reference to the latest Building Safety Programme: Monthly Data Release, how many developments contain the 163 private residential buildings still with ACM cladding systems.

Kit Malthouse: MHCLG have been informed by local authorities and building owners of 163 high-rise residential buildings with Aluminium Composite Material cladding systems unlikely to meet Building Regulations, which are yet to be remediated (at 28 February 2019). Of these, 102 buildings are parts of 31 distinct developments. In total, the 163 buildings span 92 separate developments.

High Rise Flats: Insulation

Sarah Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether he has made an assessment of the fire safety risk to residents in developments containing one or more of the 163 private residential blocks still covered in ACM cladding where their block is not covered in cladding but may be affected by a fire in one that is.

Kit Malthouse: The Government’s priority is to ensure that residents of high-rise (above 18 metres) buildings with unsafe Aluminium Composite Material (ACM) are safe in their homes.  It is in everyone’s interests, including those who live in neighbouring buildings, for unsafe buildings to be remediated as quickly as possible.We have set up a comprehensive programme to oversee ACM remediation and have pushed owners and local authorities hard to identify and remediate unsafe buildings. We have also worked closely with local authorities and Fire and Rescue Services to ensure that interim safety measures are in place where needed, to ensure that buildings are safe until the cladding is replaced.

Ministry of Defence

HMS Forth: Construction

Douglas Chapman: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, when the Royal Navy officially accepted HMS Forth; when her sea trials commenced; and what the date is when sea trails are expected to be completed.

Stuart Andrew: The Ministry of Defence accepted HMS Forth at Vessel Acceptance Date on 24 January 2018 and she was commissioned into the Royal Navy (RN) on 13 April 2018. Her contractor sea trials were conducted in two parts, in October 2017 and January 2018. The RN sea trials were conducted in January 2018.HMS Forth will undertake further RN sea trials in the coming months with the expectation these will be completed in the summer.

Welbeck College: Cost Effectiveness

Liz Saville Roberts: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what value for money criteria were used to make the decision to close Welbeck College; whether that criteria will be used to assess the sustainability of the Army Foundation College Harrogate; and if he will make a statement.

Mark Lancaster: A review of the Defence Technical Officer and Engineering Entry Scheme (DTOEES), which includes Welbeck Defence Sixth Form College and the Defence Technical Undergraduate Scheme, has determined that the current scheme is no longer delivering sufficient numbers to meet the Defence requirement for technical and engineer officers, nor does it demonstrate value for money, or the flexibility to meet any changes in the Ministry of Defence (MOD)'s future requirements.The National Audit Office value for money criteria were applied robustly as part of the DTOEES review:Economy: minimising the cost of resources used or required (inputs)Efficiency: the relationship between the output of the service and the resources required to produce themEffectiveness: the relationship between the intended and actual results of public spending (outcomes)In place of the current scheme Defence will establish a new Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) Graduate Inflow Scheme designed to increase the inflow of STEM undergraduates using a range of targeted financial incentives which may include scholarships, maintenance bursaries and/or payment of tuition fees. It will also recruit from universities across the UK instead of the current limited number and allow for a wider range of degree subjects to be studied, including cyber and computer-based studies.There are no issues with the sustainability of the Army Foundation College Harrogate and there are no plans to consider its closure.

Ministry of Defence: Consultants

Peter Dowd: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many consultants his Department has hired in each year since 2016; and what the cost of that process has been to the public purse.

Stuart Andrew: Ministry of Defence (MOD) expenditure on consultancy staff is published and can be found in Table 9 of the relevant Excel tables relating to the finance and economics annual statistical bulletins for Departmental Resources on the gov.uk website at the link belowhttps://www.gov.uk/government/collections/defence-departmental-resources-indexInformation on the number of off-payroll engagements (including consultants) for periods of six months or more is available in the MOD's Annual Report and Accounts at the links below:2015-16 and 2017-18https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/mod-annual-reports2016-17https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/ministry-of-defence-annual-report-and-accounts-2016-to-2017

France: Military Decorations

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence,  how many surviving British veterans who fought for the liberation of France during the second world war are waiting (a) to have their applications to receive the French Legion d'Honneur processed by his Department and (b) to receive the award of the Legion d'Honneur for which they have been certified as eligible by his Department.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: The Ministry of Defence currently has seven applications for the Legion d'Honneur that will be sent to the French authorities shortly. There are 14 Legion d'Honneur cases for which we are seeking clarification from the applicants. There are currently 68 cases for the award being processed by the French authorities.

Saudi Arabia: Military Aid

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 18 March 2019 to Question 232090, on Saudi Arabia: Military Aid, how many RAF personnel have been employed on secondment to BAE Systems providing routine engineering and generic training support for UK-supplied aircraft and aircrews assigned to operational squadrons of the Royal Saudi Air Force in 2013-14 and each year since.

Mark Lancaster: It will take time to confirm if Ministry of Defence holds this information and I will write to the hon. Member.

Saudi Arabia: Military Aid

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 18 March 2019 to Question 232090 on Saudi Arabia: Military Aid, how many RAF personnel are currently employed on secondment to BAE Systems providing routine engineering and generic training support for UK-supplied aircraft and aircrews assigned to operational squadrons of the Royal Saudi Air Force.

Mark Lancaster: There are six RAF personnel on secondment to BAE Systems providing routine engineering and generic training support for UK-supplied aircraft and aircrews assigned to operational squadrons under long-standing Government-to-Government arrangements.These personnel do not provide direct support for Royal Saudi Air Force operational squadrons when engaged in the war in Yemen. They do not prepare aircraft for operations, this includes a prohibition on the loading of weapons, and they are not involved in the planning of operational sorties."

Saudi Arabia: Military Aid

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 18 March 2019 to Question 232090 on Saudi Arabia: Military Aid, what records his Department holds on breaches of the prohibitions on RAF personnel (a) loading weapons and (b) planning operational sorties.

Mark Lancaster: None.

Saudi Arabia: Military Aid

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 18 March 2019 to Question 232090, on Saudi Arabia: Military Aid, whether employees of BAE Systems are subject to the same restrictions as seconded members of RAF personnel on (a) loading weapons and (b) planning operational sorties.

Mark Lancaster: Yes.

Warrior Armoured Vehicle: Testing

Nia Griffith: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the timeframe is for the completion of the Warrior 2 (a) manned firing trials and (b) other trials.

Stuart Andrew: For the first two variants delivered under the Warrior Capability Sustainment Programme, manned firing is scheduled to be completed in late 2020 and all trials are due to be completed in early 2021. Dates for further trialling for other variants and capabilities are still to be confirmed.

Saudi Arabia: Military Aid

Lloyd Russell-Moyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 12 March 2019 to Question 229818, whether there are any RAF personnel or workers under contract to the UK Government that are trained as targeteers and operating in Saudi Arabia.

Mark Lancaster: No RAF personnel or workers under contract to the UK Government, even if trained as targeteers, are using their targeting skills or training in their roles in Saudi Arabia.

Armed Forces: Housing

Mr Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how much his Department has paid out in compensation to service personnel and their families living in Service Family Accommodation due to poor housing conditions in each of the past five years.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: No compensation has been paid to Service personnel due to poor housing conditions. The Ministry of Defence only allocates properties that meet the Decent Homes Standard as a minimum condition. In April 2017, a compensation scheme was introduced to provide recompense to Service families in two key areas – missed maintenance appointments and significant defects encountered at Move-In to a new property. Details of these payments are given below.   2017-182018-19 ValueNo of ClaimsValueNo of ClaimsMissed Maintenance appointments£102,9203,058£99,5702,926Significant Defects at Move-In£18,480232£9,300121

Department for Work and Pensions

Department for Work and Pensions: Written Questions

Nic Dakin: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer of 28 January 2019 to Question 211712 on Universal Credit, when her Department plans to provide a substantive answer to that Question; and for what reason that answer has not yet been provided.

Alok Sharma: The response to Question 211712 was published on 19th March 2019.

Employment and Support Allowance

Debbie Abrahams: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, when Ministers authorised a change to the ESA65B letter to GPs telling them there is no longer a need for them to supply fit notes to their patients who had been found fit for work through a Work Capability Assessment.

Justin Tomlinson: I refer the Honourable Member to the response given on 6 June 2018 to Parliamentary Question 146986. The original internal recommendation to change the ESA65B letter was in summer 2016.

Employment and Support Allowance

Debbie Abrahams: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many sick and disabled people have lost social security support payments whilst they appealed their work capability assessment as a result of GPs receiving the amended ESA65B letter; and what savings to the public purse have accrued as a result of stopped social security support arising from that change.

Justin Tomlinson: Claimants should not experience a loss of benefit in this situation. Claimants can be paid Employment and Support Allowance (ESA) whilst appealing a decision, the rate of which is equivalent to that of Jobseeker’s Allowance (JSA). In order for someone to be paid ESA pending an appeal they need to provide the Department with fit notes in order to be treated as having Limited Capability for Work until the appeal is determined. However, this doesn’t apply where the claimant fails a second Work Capability Assessment. Where this is the case then ESA will not be paid pending the appeal and the claimant would need to claim new style Jobseeker’s Allowance (NSJSA) or Universal Credit (UC). If a claimant’s GP does not provide them with a fit note during the appeal period they cannot be paid ESA but are able to claim UC or NSJSA where eligible.

Employment and Support Allowance

Debbie Abrahams: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment she has made of the effect of the changes to her Department's ESA65B letter to GPs on employment and support allowance claimants.

Justin Tomlinson: The Department is committed to ensuring all of its communications are clear, accurate and understandable and we continuously improve our letters. We do not routinely evaluate changes to external communications, however we do engage regularly with the welfare benefits advice sector and disability charities and take into account all of the feedback we receive. We have received comments from a number of sources including MPs, stakeholder organisations and GPs on the current version of the ESA65B letter and will take all of their feedback into account when revising it.

Universal Credit: EEA Nationals and EU Nationals

Neil Gray: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether her Department’s policy on eligibility for universal credit for EU and EEA nationals has changed in the last six months.

Alok Sharma: The Department’s policy has not changed in the last six months. The Universal Credit regulations regarding EEA nationals’ entitlement to Universal Credit were last amended on 10 June 2015.

Universal Credit: EEA Nationals and EU Nationals

Neil Gray: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if she will place in the Library her Department’s guidance to job centres on EU and EEA nationals claiming universal credit.

Alok Sharma: The Department already places copies of Universal Credit guidance in the House of Commons library, which is updated periodically. The requested information can be accessed via the following link, clicking on DEP2018-0759 and then “show all files”. For information on the Habitual Residence Test please select HRT_V5.pdf. https://www.parliament.uk/business/publications/business-papers/commons/deposited-papers/?fd=2018-04-02&td=2018-08-23&search_term=Department+for+Work+and+Pensions&itemId=119004#toggle-759

Universal Credit

Danielle Rowley: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, for what reasons funding for the Community Partner Programme will be withdrawn from March 2019; and what assessment she has made of the potential effect on the provision of disability employment support for people with mental health problems of the withdrawal of that programme.

Justin Tomlinson: The Community Partner roles were time limited and funded for a two-year period, which comes to an end in March 2019. The Community Partners have made a valuable contribution including helping us understand good provision better, helping build disability awareness and working with local employers to inform them of advice available and good practice in employing disabled people. A review of existing roles identified that there was some overlap in the support provided. In order to remove the overlap and focus on key areas, two new job roles will be introduced from April 2019: A revised Disability Employment Adviser role, bringing together the current role and incorporating elements of the Community Partner and Small Employer Adviser roles. A new Disability Employment Adviser Leader role, to manage a team of Disability Employment Advisers and incorporate the external facing elements of the Community Partner and Small Employer Adviser roles. These new roles will be instrumental in driving the government’s commitment to providing high quality support to disabled people and those with health conditions. The new roles are initially funded for two years and will be fully embedded in the Jobcentre network. They will be fully evaluated to inform future discussions about how the support they deliver may be continued. There will be no reduction in resources and we anticipate that these changes will improve the support offered to disabled people, including those with mental health conditions.

Universal Credit: Mental Illness

Danielle Rowley: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what plans she has to undertake an evaluation of (a) the Community Partner Programme and (b) that programme’s effect on claimants with mental health problems.

Justin Tomlinson: We currently have no plans to conduct an external evaluation of the work of the Community Partners and the contribution that they have made, but an internal review of the Community Partner role and other disability employment enabling roles identified that there was some overlap in the support provided to claimants. In order to remove the overlap and focus on key areas we are introducing new disability employment roles from April 2019. We are committed to continually improving the employment support we offer disabled people, including those with mental health conditions, and will ensure valuable learning from the Community Partners is built into the ongoing support we provide through our Jobcentres. We will not be reducing the amount of resource devoted to supporting disabled people into work. We are investing up to £115 million of programme funding to support the work and health agenda to enable investment in new models and to build the evidence of what works. This includes mental health trials - more than doubling the number of Employment Advisers in Improving Access to Psychological Therapies (IAPT) services - and the £3.9 million Challenge Fund, which was launched in November 2018.

Universal Credit: Disability

Danielle Rowley: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether data collected by her Department on universal credit claimants is disaggregated to take account of disabilities.

Justin Tomlinson: The self-reported health condition or disability of individual Universal Credit claimants are recorded on our system and can be viewed by work coaches. However, it is not centrally collated in a way that allows aggregated analysis to be undertaken. Universal Credit provides enhanced personalised support for all claimants, including those with a disability. All claimants receive continuous tailored support managed through personal work coaches, who know each person. Our work coaches receive extensive training to ensure they can offer effective support to different claimant groups. We continue to develop our approach to capturing accurate, aggregate data on claimants, including care leavers and claimants with vulnerabilities. This work is ongoing and has been prioritised for the current Universal Credit development phase.

Universal Credit: Mental Health

Danielle Rowley: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what mental health training is provided to work coaches supporting claimants of universal credit; and what assessment has been made of the adequacy of that training.

Justin Tomlinson: DWP is committed to providing the best possible support for all our claimants, including the most vulnerable in society. We are continuously reviewing and improving the service for vulnerable people to ensure that it is accessible and responsive to their needs. Work Coaches undergo a comprehensive learning journey designed to equip them with the tools, skills and behaviours required to provide a high quality service to all claimants. Specific training and guidance is provided for working with different vulnerable groups and those with complex needs including claimants with mental health conditions. We are providing all Work Coaches with an additional two day workshop, designed by experts in mental health and psychologists, and delivered where possible alongside external mental health partners. The training began in November 2017 and will be completed by end of March 2019. Next month we will start delivering this training to staff across the entire organisation who are employed in a claimant facing role, whether this is engaging with claimants by telephone, face to face or digitally. In June and July 2018, activity was undertaken in a number of operational sites where the Mental Health training had been delivered in order to evaluate the learning provided to work coaches and ensure it was delivering the requisite skills and behaviours originally envisaged. The outputs of that activity were used to refine the training products, where required, and supported decisions on the delivery approach for the training that will commence in April 2019.

Housing Benefit: Wales

Jessica Morden: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many households in each Welsh (a) parliamentary constituency and (b) local authority had their housing benefit payments reduced as a result of the benefit cap in (i) 2017 and (ii) 2018.

Justin Tomlinson: The tables below show the number of households capped under Housing Benefit in the requested geographical areas for the year 2017 and January to November 2018 (the latest published data). The figures do not show the total number of households capped in these areas as the benefit cap can also be applied to Universal Credit awards. Please note that figures have been rounded to protect data confidentiality. Table 1: Number of households that had their Housing Benefit capped in Wales by Local AuthorityLocal Authority nameJanuary to December 2017January to November 2018Isle of Anglesey / Ynys Môn110100Gwynedd / Gwynedd150160Conwy / Conwy190160Denbighshire / Sir Ddinbych210150Flintshire / Sir y Fflint180150Wrexham / Wrecsam220210Powys / Powys10090Ceredigion / Ceredigion7060Pembrokeshire / Sir Benfro190160Carmarthenshire / Sir Gaerfyrddin250210Swansea / Abertawe410360Neath Port Talbot / Castell-nedd Port Talbot220200Bridgend / Pen-y-bont ar Ogwr270230Vale of Glamorgan / Bro Morgannwg180160Cardiff / Caerdydd1200900Rhondda Cynon Taf / Rhondda Cynon Taf390290Merthyr Tydfil / Merthyr Tudful9080Caerphilly / Caerffili320280Blaenau Gwent / Blaenau Gwent11080Torfaen / Tor-faen200170Monmouthshire / Sir Fynwy8060Newport / Casnewydd410330Data Source: DWP 100% Single Housing Benefit Extract.   Table 2: Number of households that had their Housing Benefit capped in Wales by Parliamentary ConstituencyParliamentary Constituency nameJanuary to December 2017January to November 2018Ynys Môn10090Delyn8060Alyn and Deeside9070Wrexham110100Llanelli150110Gower7050Swansea West14090Swansea East190170Aberavon140110Cardiff Central230160Cardiff North16090Rhondda120100Torfaen190150Monmouth5040Newport East240160Newport West190170Arfon8080Aberconwy8060Clwyd West12080Vale of Clwyd160120Dwyfor Meirionnydd6050Clwyd South110100Montgomeryshire4040Ceredigion6050Preseli Pembrokeshire10090Carmarthen West and South Pembrokeshire10080Carmarthen East and Dinefwr7050Brecon and Radnorshire6040Neath8070Cynon Valley180100Merthyr Tydfil and Rhymney130100Blaenau Gwent11070Bridgend12090Ogmore140130Pontypridd8060Caerphilly160140Islwyn13080Vale of Glamorgan160130Cardiff West350280Cardiff South and Penarth440340Unknown160420Data Source: DWP 100% Single Housing Benefit Extract.For cases where we were not able to match to a specific Parliamentary Constituency, we have classified these as ‘unknown’.

Food Insecurity Bill

Mrs Emma Lewell-Buck: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, with reference to the oral contribution of 4 March 2019 by the hon. Member for South Shields, Official Report, column 749, what plans the Government has to respond to the Food Insecurity Bill; and if she will make a statement.

Justin Tomlinson: The Honourable Member’s Bill is scheduled for Second Reading on Friday 22 March. It is not usual practice for the Government to make a statement on a Private Member’s Bill.The Department for Work and Pensions has been working with a number of food security experts, the Office for National Statistics and the Scottish Government to introduce, from April 2019, a new set of food security questions in the Family Resources Survey. This means that, from Spring 2021, the Government will be able to monitor the prevalence and severity of household food insecurity at a national level and for specific groups, so that it can better understand household food needs. The survey questionnaire is regularly updated so that it provides the best possible evidence base to support policy-making and it isn’t normal practice to announce any survey changes that are made as a result.

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

High Speed 2 Railway Line

Jon Trickett: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that High Speed Two will not affect the protection of woodlands.

Jon Trickett: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to prevent loss of ancient woodland as a result of High Speed Two.

David Rutley: The Government has a manifesto commitment to ensure stronger protection for our ancient woodlands, and the irreplaceable nature of ancient woodlands is recognised in our 25 Year Environment Plan. Defra and its statutory bodies are working closely with HS2 Ltd. and the Department for Transport to make sure that environmental impacts resulting from HS2, including protection of woodland and loss of ancient woodland, are considered and minimised.Natural England and the Environment Agency have service level agreements with HS2 Ltd. to advise on the development of HS2, including on avoiding, as far as practicable, loss to ancient woodlands. Natural England has also provided information to help inform HS2 Ltd.’s Ancient Woodland Strategies. The HS2 Woodland Fund has been established for Phase 1 to support the restoration of existing plantations on ancient woodland sites (PAWS) and the creation of new native woodland. Natural England is also working with HS2 Ltd to identify ancient woodland within HS2’s route corridor which is not on the Ancient Woodland Inventory. Natural England and HS2 work together to minimise impacts on ancient woodland and to maximise opportunities for compensatory measures during detailed design, where unavoidable loss occurs.

Animal Welfare: Sentencing

David T. C. Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural affairs, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of a maximum five-year sentence for animal cruelty as a deterrent to animal cruelty offenders who use such acts of cruelty to manipulate human victims.

David Rutley: The Government is committed to the highest standards of animal welfare, and we have announced that we will increase the maximum custodial penalty for animal cruelty from six months to five years to allow the courts to impose appropriate penalties in extreme cases, whatever the motivation for the offence.

Food: Exports

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural affairs, what guidance he has provided to agri-food exporters on food labelling in the event of the UK leaving the EU without a deal; and what assessment he has made of the capacity of those exporters to put in place that labelling by the end of March 2019.

David Rutley: The Government is working closely with food retailers and suppliers to help them prepare for leaving the EU, which includes providing information on food labelling changes that must be made to UK products sold in the UK and EU after 29 March 2019. Specific guidance for the food and drink sector is now available at www.gov.uk//defra/brexit-food-drink-sector. This includes advice on food labelling. The Government is aiming wherever possible within the UK to allow a transition period of at least 21 months for food labelling changes in relation to goods produced in the UK, or imported and placed on the UK market, after exit day. The UK has no control over how food labelling changes will be enforced outside the UK. EU and other non-EU countries may require that food labelling changes are in place on exports to their markets from exit day. Businesses have been advised to seek guidance from importing contacts on labelling requirements applicable in the importing country.

Animals and Animal Products: Imports

Tom Brake: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what plans his Department has to ensure that all animals and animal products from outside the EU enter Northern Ireland through a border inspection post in the event that the UK leaves the EU without a deal.

David Rutley: In the event we leave the EU without a deal, live animals and products of animal origin originating from non-EU countries will be checked at UK Border Inspection Posts (BIPs), including those with a final import destination in Northern Ireland. In Northern Ireland, Belfast Port is the approved BIP for frozen meat and fish products pre-packed for human consumption. Belfast International Airport is the approved BIP for animal by-products that are not for human consumption.

Wildlife: Licensing

Sue Hayman: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many wildlife licensing enforcement actions have been undertaken by Natural England in each year since 2010.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: Natural England has published data on the number of enforcement actions it has undertaken for the period 2010-2015 which is publicly available and published on Gov.uk: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/527912/enforcement-annual-report-2014-2015.pdf Since 2015 Natural England has not proactively collated this data.

Plastics: Waste

Paul Farrelly: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of being party to a legally binding international treaty on plastics with clear targets and standards.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: The Government has taken on board existing relevant international agreements and commitments, which include the Basel Agreement, the Oceans Plastic Charter, and G7 and G20 Action Plans on Marine Litter. Our focus is on immediate action to tackle the pressing problem of plastic pollution and plastic waste. Our recently published Resources and Waste Strategy includes an ambitious set of policies to support elimination of avoidable plastic waste. This includes a commitment to meet the ambition of the EU’s Single-use Plastics Directive. We have also committed to work with other countries to magnify the impact of our domestic action. Accordingly we have signed up to the Ellen MacArthur New Plastics Economy Global Commitment, and we are spearheading efforts to support developing countries address plastic waste including through the Commonwealth Clean Oceans Alliance and the Global Plastics Action Partnership.

Home Office

Home Office: Consultants

Peter Dowd: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many consultants his Department has hired in each year since 2016; and what the cost of that process has been to the public purse.

Victoria Atkins: The Home Department does not procure external consultancy services on an individual consultant basis but as discrete packages of work from consultancy providers therefore it is not possible to provide costs or numbers of individual consultants engaged.The Departments spend on external consultancy services is published in the Departments Annual Report and Accounts, which are available here;https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/ho-annual-reports-and-accountsSpend for the Financial Year 2016/17 was £13.348M (page 60)Spend for the Financial Year 2017/18 was £12.728M (page 72)Spend for the current Financial Year is being assessed at will be published in the 2018/19 Annual Report and Accounts later in the year.

Radicalism: West Midlands

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what recent assessment he has made of trends in the level of right-wing extremism in the West Midlands.

Victoria Atkins: The Government takes the threat from Right Wing extremism from all parts of the UK seriously. We continually develop our understanding of the threat from Right Wing extremism so that we can respond to it appropriately.

Immigration: EU Nationals

Stuart C. McDonald: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what effect any extension to Article 50 would have on the (a) EU Settled Status Scheme for EEA nationals and (b) the full opening of that scheme on 30 March 2019.

Caroline Nokes: Until the UK leaves the EU, EEA and Swiss citizens currently living in the UK, as well as UK nationals living in other EU Member States, continue to have the same rights and status, and are subject to the same residence requirements under EU law, as was the case before Article 50 was triggered. The EU Settlement Scheme will launch fully on 30 March regardless of whether Article 50 is extended.

Knives: Crime

Louise Haigh: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, when the emergency summit on knife crime announced on 6 March will take place.

Victoria Atkins: As I announced in the House of Commons on 22 March, the Serious Violence Summit will take place in the week commencing 1 April.

Northern Ireland Office

Teachers: Pay

Maria Caulfield: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, if in the absence of the Northern Ireland Assembly she will make a decision on a teachers pay award for Northern Ireland.

Karen Bradley: The Northern Ireland Department of Finance Permanent Secretary determined 2018-19 pay policy on 22 November 2018. In keeping with HMT policy, for 2018-19, the 1% pay award limit has been removed. Any decision on an increase above 1% is for the Permanent Secretary of the Department for Education in Northern Ireland.

City Deals: Northern Ireland

Mr Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what the timetable is for finalising the (a) Londonderry Strabane City Deal and (b) other Northern Ireland City Deals.

John Penrose: As the Chancellor set out at the 2019 Spring Statement on 13 March, early stage negotiations for a Derry/Londonderry and Strabane City Region Deal are progressing well. The Government hopes to make an announcement in due course. Building on the Chancellor’s commitment to £350m towards the Belfast City Regions Deal in October, the Government is working closely with local partners and the Northern Ireland Civil Service to move to the next phase of the Deal and hopes to be in a position to agree Heads of Terms in due course.

Treasury

Roadchef: Employee Benefit Trusts

Neil Gray: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, for what reasons money wrongly paid to HMRC in January 2000 was not returned to the Roadchef Employee Benefits Trust until September 2018.

Mel Stride: The administration of the tax system is a matter for HMRC. It would not be appropriate for Treasury Ministers to become involved in the administration of the tax system in specific cases.

Sugar: Taxation

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what plans he has to extend financial levies on sugar in food and drink to more food and drink categories.

Robert Jenrick: There are no current plans to extend the Soft Drinks Industry Levy to other food or drink categories. As set out in Phase 2 of the Childhood Obesity Strategy, HMT will review the Soft Drinks Industry Levy exemption for milk-based drinks in 2020.

Treasury: Consultants

Peter Dowd: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many consultants his Department has hired in each year since 2016; and what the cost of that process has been to the public purse.

Robert Jenrick: The information is not held centrally. Details of HM Treasury’s spending on consultancy for each financial year is published in the Annual Report and Accounts which can be found at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications

Revenue and Customs: Staff

Anneliese Dodds: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many staff are employed by HMRC; and how many additional staff have been employed by HMRC as a result of preparations for the UK leaving the EU.

Mel Stride: HMRC currently employs 58,058 full-time equivalent staff (at end of February). HMRC has used a variety of methods to resource work on issues relating to the UK’s withdrawal from the EU including, but not exclusively, employing additional staff. Information is not segmented to show how many additional staff have been employed, as opposed to any other method of resourcing, to work on EU Exit.

Borders: Northern Ireland

Tom Brake: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps the Government is taking to (a) stop goods subject to tariffs flowing freely from the Republic of Ireland to Northern Ireland and (b) stop those goods being smuggled into the rest of the UK in the event that the UK leaves the EU without a deal.

Mel Stride: The UK Government’s priority in relation to Northern Ireland is meeting its commitment to avoid a hard border and ensure no new physical infrastructure or related checks and controls. Therefore, under the temporary approach to the NI border announced by the Government in the event of no deal, consignments from Ireland will not be subject to a tariff when entering Northern Ireland. This approach reflects the unique circumstances of the land border and the Government’s commitment to preserving the Belfast (Good Friday) Agreement in full. HMRC will support businesses who are moving goods across the border legitimately, including businesses that continue to use the routes they use today. For goods entering Northern Ireland from Ireland, including where the ultimate destination is Great Britain, provided traders choose routes for commercial reasons not connected with an avoidance purpose, tariffs will not be due and tariff rate quotas will not apply. However, if traders divert goods through Ireland and Northern Ireland with the main purpose of avoiding customs duty HMRC will have the power to require them to pay the UK’s tariff, wherever the goods are from. HMRC will continue to enforce compliance on an intelligence-led basis to ensure trade is consistent with the requirements set out in legislation. HMRC remains committed to promoting compliance and tackling avoidance and evasion and would take steps to ensure that this temporary arrangement is not abused.

Brexit

Tom Brake: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what discussions the Government has held with the EU on the steps the EU will need to take to (a) protect the integrity of the Single Market, (b) protect revenue collection in the Republic of Ireland and the rest of the EU and (c) avoid breaking EU law in a no deal scenario when the UK applies zero tariffs to certain goods being imported into the UK.

Mel Stride: It is for the EU to decide what steps it needs to take in a no deal scenario, including in relation to the operation of tariffs and revenue collection in the Republic of Ireland.

Married People: Tax Allowances

Lucy Powell: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what data his Department holds on the ages of people who claim married couple's allowance.

Mel Stride: The Married Couple’s Allowance (MCA) is available for couples where at least one of the partners was born before 6th April 1935. For the current tax year, at least one of the partners would have to have been at least 83 years old as of 6th April 2018. For 2018-19, the average age of claimants of MCA is around 87 years old. This estimate is based on the 2015-16 Survey of Personal Incomes projected using economic assumptions consistent with the OBR’s October 2018 Economic and Fiscal Outlook.

NHS: Drugs

Stephen Morgan: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps his Department is taking to equalize VAT between privately-owned companies and the NHS in relation to pharmaceutical procurement.

Mel Stride: VAT is charged on the sale of pharmaceutical products, regardless of whether the purchaser is a privately-owned company or the NHS. The central funding the NHS receives from the Treasury is intended to cover the costs NHS bodies incur in providing free healthcare, including VAT costs.

London Capital and Finance

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps the Government is taking to compensate people who invested in London Capital of Finance.

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to the collapse of London Capital of Finance, what steps he is taking to prevent investment schemes which engage in mis-selling from trading.

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to the collapse of London Capital Finance, what recent assessment he has made of the (a) adequacy of the financial regulatory framework and (b) effectiveness of that framework in relation to inexperienced investors.

John Glen: The Government takes the failure of London Capital and Finance (‘LCF’) very seriously and is closely monitoring current developments. The Serious Fraud Office, working in conjunction with the Financial Conduct Authority (‘FCA’), has opened an investigation into individuals associated with LCF and it would be inappropriate for the Government to comment further while this investigation is ongoing. HM Treasury keeps the regulatory framework for financial services under constant review, and updates it as necessary. We are committed to maintaining high standards of investor protection within our regulatory framework for financial services. However, this needs to be balanced with a need to regulate only where there is a clear case for doing so. The marketing and promotion of minibonds, such as those sold by LCF, are already subject to financial promotion restrictions set out in the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000. In the UK, responsibility for regulating the promotion and marketing of minibonds lies with the FCA, and firms that fail to meet any of the relevant requirements may be subject to enforcement action. Turning to the matter of compensation for those affected by this issue, the Financial Services Compensation Scheme’s (‘FSCS’) current assessment is that LCF’s activities are not FSCS-protected, which means LCF’s investors will not be eligible to claim for compensation from the FSCS. However, the FSCS is working closely with the administrators to understand more about LCF’s activities. If there are circumstances that give rise to potentially valid claims, the FSCS will begin to accept claims against LCF and communicate this on their website.

Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport

Internet: Proof of Identity

Eddie Hughes: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what plans his Department has to develop a strong market for age and identity verification products to (a) protect young people against internet harms and (b) to reduce online fraud.

Margot James: The government is supporting the development of a standards based digital identity market in the UK. The Minister for Implementation made a written statement on the future of Gov.uk Verify programme on 9 October 2018 setting out next steps. Discussions continue within government and with industry as we develop our proposals, which we will set out further in due course.

BBC Northern Ireland

Mr Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, whether he plans to speak to BBC NI on its commissioning process and independent accountability during his visit to Northern Ireland this month.

Margot James: The Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport will meet with key stakeholders from the creative industries in Northern Ireland. The Secretary of State will not meet BBC Northern Ireland during this visit.

Charity Commission: Finance

Mr Steve Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, pursuant to the Answer 14 March 2019 to Question 229162 on Charity Commission: Finance, how many years the additional Government funding of £5 million per year agreed for the Charity Commission will continue.

Mims Davies: The Charity Commission is the regulator of charities in England and Wales. In January 2018, the government awarded the Commission an additional £5m per year from April 2018 to help respond to increasing demand on its core regulatory functions. This funding was awarded as an interim solution, while the Commission considers longer term, more sustainable funding models, including consulting on charging the largest charities. The future funding for the Charity Commission will be considered as part of the upcoming spending review.

Office for Civil Society

Mr Steve Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, pursuant to the Answer of 20 February 2019 to Question 218152 on Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport: Brexit, how many of those staff who have been seconded from their primary role to make preparations for the UK leaving the EU without a deal worked in the Office for Civil Society.

Mims Davies: I refer the hon member to the secretary of state’s answer of 20 February 2019 to Question 218152.

Office for Civil Society

Mr Steve Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, how many officials in his Department are working for the Office for Civil Society.

Mims Davies: As of 01/03/2019, 106 officials in the Department are working for the Office for Civil Society.

Third Sector

Mr Steve Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, how many meetings the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Sport and Civil Society has had with (a) social enterprises, (b) charities and (c) voluntary sector umbrella bodies since her appointment in November 2018.

Mims Davies: I meet regularly with representatives from social enterprises, charities and the voluntary sector. A full list of meetings is published quarterly on: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/ministers-transparency-publications

Radio: Staff

Tom Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what estimate he has made of the number of people employed in the radio industry in each of the nations and regions of the UK in each of the last five years.

Margot James: The number of employees in the radio sector by nation and regions is shown in the table. Region20132014201520162017East50070075500400East Midlands350450400600600London7,0007,0007,0007,0008,000North East75150175150175North West3507005006001,000Scotland4504503501,750500South East350600800800800South West2503002251,000500Wales300175250300225West Midlands225600450500350Yorkshire and The Humber500400400500500Total11,00012,00011,00014,00013,000

Commercial Broadcasting: Radio

Tom Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, whether his Department undertook an impact assessment of the effect of changes to localness guidelines for commercial radio on jobs in local commercial radio stations.

Margot James: The changes to the localness guidance were made by Ofcom, the independent regulator, in line with its requirements under section 314 of the Communications Act 2003 to ensure effective and appropriate localness guidance is in place (as required under the 2003 Act). Ofcom's consultation in 2018 on its proposed changes to the localness guidance and impact assessment covered the potential impacts on radio listeners and the industry.

Prime Minister

UK Relations with EU

Daniel Kawczynski: To ask the Prime Minister, how many official meetings she has had with each of her EU counterparts since June 2016.

Mrs Theresa May: Details of my Official meetings are in the public domain and can be found on the gov.uk website.

Department for Exiting the European Union

Chevening

Tulip Siddiq: To ask the Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union, how many times he has used Chevening House for (a) departmental and (b) personal use since he came into office in November 2018; and what the duration was of each of those occasions.

Chris Heaton-Harris: The Secretary of State, Steve Barclay, has not used Chevening House for Departmental or personal use since he came into office in November 2018.Chevening House is not funded by the Government and is the responsibility of its trustees. The Prime Minister decides who occupies the building. It is currently shared by the Foreign Secretary, the Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union and the Secretary of State for International Trade.